What Will Matter The Most

I used a sermon illustration that really puts things into perspective concerning our salvation.

Joe Stowell writes: "Several years ago a friend of mine visited an exhibit of relics from the infamous Titanic voyage. Exhibit visitors were given a replica ticket with the name of an actual passenger or crew member who, decades earlier, had embarked on the trip of a lifetime. After the tour group walked through the exhibit viewing pieces of silver dinnerware and other artifacts, the tour ended with an unforgettable twist. A large board listed the names of all the passengers, including their status—first class, second class, crew. As my friend looked for the name of the person whose ticket he was holding, he noticed a line across the board dividing the names. Above the line were the names of those who were “saved” and below the line all those who were “lost.” (Our Daily Bread 2/24/2011) 

In the end, it will not matter what our status is. But what will matter is if we will be "lost", or "found." I pray that we will have established, a saving relationship with Jesus Christ, and be on the "found" list, safely home with Him forever. GP

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The Lesson Aim

How important is the lesson aim to a class lesson? The lesson aim is the objective, or goal of what you (as a teacher) want your class to accomplish or achieve.

For Bible school lessons, we try to focus on the main message of what the passage of Scripture, or Bible story is telling us.
To ask the question such as: What does the story of David and Goliath, tell us? What is the main application in that story?

I would like to apply this to our everyday life. As Christians, everyday we should pursue a lesson aim. As I read my Bible today, and target a certain passage of Scripture, or Scripture verse, what is the lesson I should take away from it today? Or if we are dealing with a specific problem, and we look up a Scripture that we think will have some application to help us, with this problem; Is there a truth from that passage of Scripture, that really gives us specific insight for our problem?

Searching for a lesson aim for a Bible school lesson, is the best way for you the teacher, and your class to unite, in pursuing a central message, and application. For everyday life, a lesson aim will help us harness those truths, that will help us in dealing with the problems, in our Christian walk. As our God is not a God of chaos, but a God of order and purpose, It pleases Him, when we search for those lesson aims, that help to direct us, in His wisdom, and His way.

So what can we learn today? GP

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An Empty Life

The word "vain" in the Bible usually means "empty." Solomon used the word "vanity" 33 times meaning "emptiness."
 How does one acquire an "empty life?"

 You can live a life pursuing possessions pleasure, power, and position, and still end up feeling very dissatisfied. You may feel at one point, that you have it all, and at another point, feel there is something missing in your life.

David wrote "You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore." (Psalm 16:11) According to David, it is in the presence of the Lord, where we find our joy and satisfaction. That in the fellowship with the Lord, we find eternal pleasure.

Many in the world would scoff at this, and say: "That's not where it's at!" But when you count the many times the world has let us down, and could not satisfy the longings of our heart, we can see where David is coming from.

In regard to the time of satisfaction given to the worldly pursuits, you will never find the word "forevermore." The worldly things cannot deliver an eternal fulfillment, like the things of God.

Will you let Him fill your life today? GP

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Dancing With The Devil

"Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil." (1 John 3:8)

 In James 1:15, James reveals the process of sin, and the result of sin. "Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and sin when it is full-grown, brings forth death" No doubt Satan is encouraging us to follow through with this process.

But we need to remember that we don't have to dance with the devil. We have freedom of choice. We can choose to keep our desires from leading us down this destructive road. One of the fruits of the Spirit is Self-Control (Galatians 5:23b)

In the analogy of a dance, it would far better to have the Holy Spirit as our partner, than Satan. Instead of fulfilling the lusts of the flesh, we are to keep in step with the Holy Spirit (Gal.5:25)

In our text, John shares part of the purpose for Jesus coming into the world. "The Son of God appeared...to destroy the works of the devil." (v.8c) So why would we indulge in what Jesus came to destroy.
We can choose to keep in step with the Holy Spirit, and live the life God wants us to live. A life that is free of the sinful attitudes and actions, that can send us to hell.

In life's dance, let's make sure we have the right partner. GP

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Knowing Where We're Going

"Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins." 
(John 8:24) 

What Jesus said to the religious leaders at that time, He says to us today.
The Pharisees thought that since they had the law, they knew where they were going. Keeping the law perfectly would secure them a place in heaven. But who can keep the law perfectly?

Without the light of life (Jesus) they would continue in spiritual darkness.
And that applies to us today. Just like the pharisees, we are sinners who need a Savior. Without faith in our Savior, Jesus Christ, we too, will die in our sins.
That is not the direction we want to go.

It is by believing that Jesus is "He" (the Son of God, and Savior of our souls) that we can begin the process of faith, and receive the place of being "In Christ." Being "In Christ"  will secure for us, all of the spiritual blessings God has to offer. (Ephesians 1:3)

Without Jesus, there is no way that we have certainty in our lives.
Not for today, and especially not for tomorrow. So make your eternal position secure. Place your faith, and your life "In Jesus" today.
Have peace of mind, in knowing your path, and where it will lead. GP

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The Right Choice

"And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15) 

Why should we choose to live and serve the Lord Jesus Christ?

Everyday we make choices. And some choices will have a great impact on the outcome of our future. Many in this world, do not consider their eternal destiny. They choose to live for today, and let tomorrow take care of itself. But there will come a time, when we will run out of time, and we will step into our tomorrow. When we do, we will find ourselves in a very bad state of affairs.

Only Jesus has the keys to eternal happiness. Apart from Him, there is no eternal hope for mankind, The choice is yours today. The choice to receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, and to place your eternal future in His hands.

Joshua made the right choice in this life, for him and His family. But He knew He was also making the right choice for eternity as well. I pray that before it's too late, you will make the right choice.
GP

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Leadership That Love

"Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood." (Acts 20:28) 

These are just part of the words of encouragement that the Apostle Paul gave the elders of the church in Ephesus. When you read vv. 17-38 you can feel the love that Paul had for these men.

He encouraged them as shepherds of the flock in Ephesus to pay attention to themselves. To be careful not to exhibit dominating or dictatorial attitudes and actions towards the church, (in which Jesus loved, and gave His life for). They are to be loving overseers of the church.

Today, we find those in spiritual leadership, (such as pastors, elders, deacons, teachers), using people as a platform to promote themselves. They get very impatient, and up in arms, when the people do not comply with their every direction.

It is one thing to be authoritative, and another, to be dictatorial.
Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ was a "Servant Leader" He stated that His purpose for coming into this world, was to serve mankind.

When leadership loves, like Jesus, what a difference it will make in the Church! GP

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A Horrible Hypocrisy

"If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen." (1 John 4:20)

 If the character of God is love, and the intentions of God is of love, how can we, (who profess to share in that same character, and intent) say we love God, when we hate our brother? It is hypocrisy in the truest form.

You would think that this hypocrisy would not exist in the church, but it does. You would think that hate does not exist in the church, but it does. Satan uses opportunities (with Christian people) to sow seeds of insecurity, jealousy, and selfishness. Christians will wear the mask of pure love, but at the same time display these worldly attitudes, that will cause division in the body of Christ.

So what is the answer to overcoming this hypocrisy? John has the answer in this verse: "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love." (1 John 4:18)

Pure love builds a confidence, satisfaction, and a peace in our hearts.
It takes away the feeling that we will lose something in our relationship with God, and others. Instead of fearing that we will lose something for ourselves, we will want God's best for everyone, who is in our world, and beyond. GP 

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Doing The Will Of The Father

"Father, if it is Your will, remove this cup from Me nevertheless not My will, but Yours. be done." 
(Luke 22:42) 

Here is where the battle against Satan was met with great submissiveness and strength. When it comes time for us to meet the battle of our trials head on, will we face them the same way that Jesus did?

No way would anyone want to go and die on a cross, even the Son of God. Some have had the gall to call this moment, "a moment of weakness." But in reality, this was a very great display of strength.
It takes faith, and a lot of courage to say, "Father, I know what I would rather do, but if it is Your will that I go through this trial, than let it be as you say." 

Satan would love it if we would back away, or run away, and stick our heads in the sand, hoping that everything will go away. But how many times, have we woke up the next morning, and had to face the same mountain of trials again. Yes, they were still there.

But following through with our Heavenly Father's will, does not mean that we will have to do it alone. Following Jesus' prayer, an angel came and strengthened Him.(v.43) We may not physically see an angel, but that's not to say, that one won't be with us, as we go through this tough experience.

All of heaven is behind us, when we face those tough battles in our lives. God's will is always best, even when it is hard to accept.
But know this, God will always be with us, to bring us through the storms of life. To bring us to the blue sky of peace in our hearts. GP

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What About Character?

"The ninth Republican presidential debate was in many ways the nastiest of the campaign, complete with raised voices, name calling, and criticism of family members Saturday night in South Carolina." (Sean Sullivan of the Washington Post)

 I have been watching the the presidential debates, and after seeing all of the mudslinging, I have to ask the question: What does this say about good character?

For those candidates who have been bashing each other, I ask, do I want you to represent me as president? If you act this way in public, how do you act in private? They will say, "well, that's politics!" But I say, when you leave a negative impression such as this, it sticks in the minds of the viewers.

But it doesn't matter what I think, but it does matter what the Lord Thinks. The Lord spoke through the Apostle Paul when he said: "Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear." (Ephesians 4:29) 
I ask you, presidential candidates, is this what you are doing? I would rather have a candidate that attacks the issues, not the other candidates. To me that is demonstrating good character! GP

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The One On One Relationship

"Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing." (1 Thessalonians 5:11)

 Coming from a small family, it has been hard for me to understand how large families, maintain a feeling of closeness and solidarity.

I agree that distance does limit us in maintaining our closeness, and our ability to work things out if there are problems.

In all families, large or small, I believe that the unity and solidarity of a family is built by the one on one relationships.

The Apostle Paul, encourages the members of the family of God at Thessalonica to make the most of their time, by comforting each other, edifying (or encouraging) each other, just as they were doing.
In essence Paul is saying: Keep on doing it, because it is making a difference.

This constant support involves one on one intervention.
This is something that is not seen in families today. And because it is not exercised, when the whole family gets together, there is an awkwardness. You feel like strangers instead of family members.

It is something I need to do a better job at. But it must be a reciprocal process. When we encourage each other on a one on one basis, it helps to strengthen the fellowship and unity of the family as a whole.

Our awesome God desires a one on one relationship with us, that in turn will benefit the whole family of God, that we are apart of. GP

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The Motivation of Love

"Nevertheless, I have this against you, that you have left your first love." 
(Revelation 2:4)

 What motivates you to live for, and serve the Lord? There have been a lot of different reasons why people have involved themselves in the work of the church. Many of them have been for selfish reasons.

When I hear of congregations closing their doors, I ask myself:
"What was the motivation for that?" Could it be that we are loving ourselves more, and being selfish? Couldn't be!

The church in Ephesus was a busy church, but not a productive church. They were not growing spiritually, even though they may have been growing in number.

It begins with our relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. Do we love Him as He loves us? Do we love the things He loves, and the principles and practices that He taught?

If we love the Lord Jesus, with all of our heart and being, there is no way that a church would close it's doors, and stop being the witness it needs to be in the community.

We would put on the mind of Christ, and humble ourselves, and strive to work together to build the kingdom of God where we are.

If you love someone deeply, you will sacrifice all, for that person.
In all that we do for Jesus, is it backed up by a deep, sincere, committed love for Him? GP

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The Mind Of Christ

"Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus..." (Philippians 2:5) 

What are we talking about when we say that we must have the mind of Christ?
I believe that what the Apostle Paul was saying was that we should try as hard as we can to develop the character of Christ in our lives.

All of the fruit of the Spirit we find in Galatians 5:22-23 is apart of the character of Christ. His love, His humility, His submissiveness to the Heavenly Father, (the determination to do His Father's will). All that is mentioned in the Scriptures concerning the character of God, (that we see in Jesus), we are to develop as being our character.

We know that our personality is apart of our genetics, but also a lot of our personality, is character that is learned. As we study the Word of God, and apply the character of Christ to our lives, we will be doing so much better in our relationships with others. There will be more solidarity in our relationships than ever before. We will be people who will be easier to be around, and to work with.

The mind of Jesus Christ, was, and is, a mind that was set on benefiting all man-kind. That is why He came to this world. May others always be our main focus, and when they are, that is when we truly will be blessed. GP

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The Bond Of Perfection

"But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection." (Colossians 3:14) 

I like what Warren Wiersbe writes in his devotional commentary entitled: "With The Word" ["God wants you to wear the graceclothes (found in vv.12-13) not the graveclothes! If your focus is on things heavenly, you will obey God in things on earth, especially in your relationships with others."

 It's like we are balls that are bouncing off each other. We expect others to pay attention to us, to care about us, to wear all of the graceclothes mentioned in Colossians 3:12-13, and people expect us to do the same.

The word that Paul uses for love (which is the virtue that binds all the other virtues together as one) is "Agape" love. This is an unconditional love. Which means that, even if others do not pay attention to us, or show their graceclothes to us, this does not give us the excuse to not show our graceclothes to them.

We need to have the attitude of Christ, that everyone is important. He is the Good Shepherd, that cares for all His sheep. If one is lost,
He goes after it until He finds it, and brings it home (Luke 15:1-7)

Selfishness is a spiritual weed that is not easily uprooted, but not impossible. But when we wear the graceclothes, and bind them together with love, it will choke out this weed, and make it hard for it, to get its roots into our relationships again.

 So let's put on the bond of perfection. The powerful unconditional "Agape" love. GP

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What Love Is To Us

"Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends. "You are My friends, if you do whatever I command you." (John 15:13) 

What did love mean to Jesus? He was all about love. Going to the cross of Calvary and dying for the sins of the world, is evidence of that.

 There is a strong selfishness that takes away our desire to love others, and to be willing, if necessary to lay down our lives, for family and friends.

The love for ourselves is stronger. If people do not do as we say, or do not satisfy some inner need in our heart, we write them off. You are not the best person for me, so I will search for those, who are the best for me.

I remember telling couples that I counseled for marriage: "It's not just finding the right person that is important, but it's being the right person." Love is not just a virtue we use when we feel it is right for us, but love is an expression of our nature.

As John says "Love is of God" (1 John 4:7a) It is who He is. And even though at times, He must be just, that does not take away the fact, that He is love, and no matter who it is, or what the circumstance, He wants to provide His best, for those who will reach out to Him in faith.

So let's not love just when it is convenient for us, or when it suits our purpose, but let's let love, be the expression of our relationship with God, and our desire to be like Him, in every relationship we have. GP

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What Does God Think Of Me?

*It has been said that each of us is at least four different people.
1) The person we think we are.
2) The person others think we are.
3) The person we think others think we are.
4) The person we really are.

Last week I started a sermon series on the subject of love, and started with God's love for us. The question we looked at was: "What Does God Think of Me?"

In Ephesians 1:4-14 we looked at how God views us in four different ways. Just briefly mentioned: God sees us "In Christ" as:
Chosen In Christ (v.4) 
Rescued In Christ (v.7)
Adopted In Christ (v.5) 
Honored In Christ (vv.7-14)

There are a lot of people who show a false face on how they really feel about themselves, and have a wrong idea about how God sees them, and how He feels about them.

If there is one thing that is established and maintained here in Paul's words, and all through the Bible, is that God loves us deeply, and was willing to go the distance, to have us with Him for eternity. There is no denying that. You may refuse God's love, but it is very evident from the Scriptures that God sees us as His treasure.

Will you accept how God feels about you, and run to Him to place yourselves in His loving and eternal care? GP

Lesson Outline: *RBC Ministries, Radio Bible Class "Discovery Series "What Does God Think Of Me Now? Our Positon In Christ 

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